Ground Zero
by selfishSky
Summary: With fiery fangs and scorching talons, the two titan of powers shall clash. And at the end of the day, only one shall triumph, roaring victory over the other's loss. - One shot only, battle focused, minimum conversation. -


Author's Note: I deeply regret the fact that I don't own the Pokemon franchise.

Unnecessary Ranting (continuing from the Author's Note): If I was, at the very least I would let Ash hook up with one of the girls, he deserves at least that much. At the very least we know that Nobita will eventually marry Shizuka in Doraemon. But Ash? The way the show is going, I wouldn't be surprised if he ended up marrying Mew. And that is after I have two or three children of my own.

Warning: I love pokemon, the idea of a pocketable (is that even a word) monster is exciting. But I have to admit that I don't really follow the game, and the last series I watched was XY, and that was after skipping other series between the 1st one and XY. So yeah I must admit I am not the biggest fan of the franchise, but I love the idea and the concept. So I beg of you, please be kind with me if I butchered some skills, names, story plots etc. After all, I just wann have fun while expressing myself.

And now onward to the story.

-Ground Zero-

"I choose you, Charizard!"

Red light shot out from the opened contraption, racing to the ground before it expanded, gaining in width and height. The ground rumbled as the draconic pokemon's feet finally touched the arena. Web like cracks spread from where the massive claws meet the stone tiled field, yielding under the immense force that was Charizard. He stretched his wings, flexing the massive appendix, untying the knot from the long stay inside the pokeball.

Stretching his neck, his eyes landed upon his foe. Floating ahead of him in calm manner, curiosity visible upon his advisory's face, and Charizard's eyes widen in delight upon recognizing the pokemon in front of him.

A Latios.

And then he roared.

A roar so massive blasted out from an opened massive jaws. Wind buffeted from where the draconic pokemon stood, pushed around like a sonic boom from the mere roar of the fiery pokemon. Screams could be heard from the rows of spectators, excitement and exhilaration from the simple statement of challenge.

Ash grinned behind the bulking figure of his pokemon. His hand reaching for his hat, keeping it safe from the onslaught of the wind even behind the protection of the flying pokemon. He could feel the excitement building inside his strongest battler, the ignited fire burning inside the dual typing pokemon. It was bright, and it was intoxicating. Adrenaline coursed inside his veins, and he knew that the same thing was happening inside his Charizard.

The sound died down, and the wind stopped howling. The orange pokemon's eyes focused on his foe who now sported a guarded expression, his foe's stance rigid in weariness. The massive jaws stretched back into a grin, rows of glistening fangs clenching in unrestrained excitement.

At last.

"Quite an impressive pokemon," Tobias commented, a slight of awe underlying his words. "But will it be able to keep up with Latios, I wonder?"

"Well, we won't know if we don't try right? Charizard, flamethrower!"

Intense heat buildup from the inside of the jaw of the flying pokemon, a telltale of flamethrower, before a gigantic column of unrelenting fire crossed the arena towards the eon dragon, engulfing the floating pokemon in a sea of fire. The raging inferno slammed against the psychic barrier surrounding the arena with massive force, rattling the invincible wall. Purple hexagon flashed around the arena; the psychic pokemons around the circular stage gritted their teeth, struggling to contain the raging fire.

Tobias cursed inwardly, silently rattled by the sheer force behind the attack. Heat could be felt from where he was standing even under the protection of the invincible wall. He had fought countless battle against countless trainer, all who fell under his legendaries' might, yet Ash's charizard's raw power surpassed almost all of them.

"Latios, take to the sky. Climb as high as you can!" Tobias shouted.

"Charizard, chase him!" Ash commanded. Tobias' Latios has managed to endure Charizard's flamethrower, arguably one of the strongest attack in his arsenal. Indeed worthy of the status as a legendary pokemon. It wasn't without casualties though, he could see some singed fur and several burn marks on Latios' body. It seems light screen wasn't able to completely shield the eon dragon from Charizard's wrath.

Charizard roar loudly. He flapped his mighty wings, propelling himself towards the sky in a speed that belied his massive figure, chasing his foe with vigor. But the eon dragon was far above him, his speed and agility was renown throughout legend, speed that not even the mighty dragonite will be able to compete against. The blue legendary pokemon rose even higher in a blinding speed, his form becoming but a tiny speck among the clear blue sky.

Charizard stopped his flight. His foe was no longer visible, lost among the sea of cloud. He was wary. Latias was one of the legendaries, one which aerial combat was one of his strongest domain. Even Charizard, a pokemon species which was renowned as one of the apex ruler of the sky was not truly invincible. And without his trainer to coordinate his attack, his experience during his training in Charific Valley told him to stop. Rushing forward might as well spelled an ambush.

And that could also mean certain defeat.

A purplish glint flickered behind the veil of cloud, an oddity among the blue color. Charizard narrowed his eyes, trying to discern the shape before his lips formed into a smirk.

Latios.

Like a purple comet, Latios sped across the vast sky. Purple aura enveloped him, a sign of giga impact, parting clouds as he darted towards his adversary in vigor. Streaks of purple light left behind as he cleaved the sky. Latios narrowed his eyes, his sight locked to his only target, the orange draconic pokemon whose might he acknowledged simply by one exchange of power.

The flamethrower has been a solid prove that even a legendary was not invincible, the singed fur he now supported was a silent testament how a common pokemon could gain enough power to rival the legendaries. And he was sure it hasn't even been his foe's strongest attack, by all means flamethrower wasn't a charizard strongest attack, and there were several higher tier attacks he could think of that they could learn. It gave him a shudder just to think of it.

But he couldn't waver; his trainer was depending on him. It wasn't only for his trainer though, it was also for his pride. Pride as a legendary, and even more basic, pride as a pokemon.

He would win this.

Charizard roared loudly, a proclamation of challenge towards his incoming foe. His muscles bristled under his skin, adrenalin pumping through his vein in anticipation, metallic sheen glistened from his two mighty wings. He longed for this. The fight in Charific valley had been brutal, each Charizard fighting with all their might like there was no tomorrow. Scars and burn marks were trophy they gathered as each of them fought to rise among the hierarchy, to finally become the pinnacle of power in Charific Valley.

But even then it eventually become dull, years of climbing the seat of power has become a daily activity.

He wanted challenge.

He needed challenge.

He longed for challenge.

Come.

A gigantic shockwave rang on the sky above the stadium. Gale of wind rushed from the collision, cloud dispersed into every direction, pushed by unimaginable pressure generated from the clash of the two titans of power. Screams of fear and excitement filled the atmosphere, reaching a new high that never before been reached inside the stadium.

Ash squinted his eyes, searching for Charizard's form among the scattered cloud. A speck of orang colored blur caught his eyes, and his breath caught as he realized the rapidly descending form of his pokemon.

"Charizard!"

Charizard eyes opened upon hearing his trainer's panicked voice. He blinked several times, chasing away the wariness from his sight. Wind raced around him, and he wasn't surprised when he saw the land rapidly coming towards him.

"Charizard, spread your wing and fly!"

With a practiced movement, the draconic pokemon turned around, his belly towards the arena. He tried to spread his wings, grunting slightly as he fought against the numbing feeling left behind by the giga impact. Even with steel wing, he couldn't fully negate the power of Latios' attack, the collision robbing him of consciousness for a split second. A groan escaped his jaws, pain surged on his aching appendix.

A speck of bright blue light on the corner of his eyes caught his attention, and his eyes widen in slight fear as he saw the eon dragon gathering energy on the tips if its jaw. Latios released the dragon pulse, huge pulsing energy coming straight at the descending form of Charizard. It sped across the sky, crackling power parted the air towards its target.

With a great roar, Charizard spread his wings and sped forward with a mighty flap of his wings, ignoring the pain he felt from said action. The blue energy ball missed the draconian pokemon by a hair's width, passing where he had been only second ago, before impacting the arena with a loud explosion.

"Bombard him Latios!" Tobias shouted.

Without hesitation, Latios gathered energy on his jaw, not willing to let his foe recover. Another volley of dragon pulse bombarded Charizard, lacking in power yet with higher number. Explosion upon explosion covered the arena, rain of bluish plasma decorated the air above the field as orange blur danced among the chaos.

"Charizard, steel wing and rise up! Take to the sky!"

Metalic sheen covered the fiery pokemon's wings, covering them with energy before he started his ascend in great speed. Ash knew the risk, ascending would mean Charizard's speed would be lowered due to additional air resistance, but dodging will only stall time before they would finally be hit from above by Latios. They need to strike back.

Tobias noticed his foe's speed decline for a bit, its body gained altitude by second. He scowled, he wouldn't let this beast reached the air.

"Latios, dragon pulse max power. Shot him down!"

Not willing to let such opportunity to escape him, Latios gathered his power on his jaw. Blue crackling energy gathered between his opening mouths, growing in size by each moment, before he let it loose with an explosive sound of thunder. The dragon pulse sped across the arena with ferocity. Crackling blue lightning danced on its wake, heating the atmosphere, splitting the air like hot knife.

"Charizard, Wing Attack! Send it back!"

Charizard spun around, finding his gaze enraptured by the coming gigantic blue plasma. He roared, as if daring the energy to come even further before he slammed his hardened wing into the crackling projectile. A clash of power erupted in the stadium, power competing to overtake one another. His wings buckled under the pressure, muscle straining against the onslaught of the crackling projectile, yet he kept on pushing. A deep grunt escaped the fiery pokemon's jaws; he let out another massive roar, and he finally pushed through the attack, sending the projectile back to its owner.

Latios' eyes widen in unfiltered surprise upon the unexpected development. Stunned for a mere split second, his battle honed reflex commanded his body to move even before his mind can fully comprehend the situation, his own power passing under him in a mere hair width margin. Another tremor rocked the invisible wall behind him, the dragon pulse impacting again the psychic barrier. One of the psychic pokemon outside the barrier was flung towards the spectator's seat, a scream resounded from among the surprised mob. A flash of red, and another psychic pokemon took his fallen compatriot's place.

Inwardly cursing, Tobias lamented the fact that he had underestimated the tenacity of Ash's Charizard. Its sheer determination, coupled with its already impressive strength had proven to be a major hurdle in his quest to be the champion of Sinnoh. To be able to stop Latios' full charged dragon pulse, and not to mention sending it back to his pokemon, was prove to how powerful the orang draconic pokemon was.

A flash of red engulfed his vision as a flamethrower clash against the invincible barrier, his mind catching up to see the two pokemon dancing on the arena, trading attack between them in an intricate dance. The orang behemoth ducked under a narrowly missed dragon pulse, before retaliating with his own flamethrower. A gigantic column of unrelenting flame crossed the arena in an instant, intent on swallowing its advisory within its scorching heat. The blue eon pokemon swerved to his right, his reflexes let him escaped the incoming danger within the narrowest margin, barreling before he righted itself. A split second later, a crackling blue energy sped across the arena, zeroing to the dual flying fire dragon with unrelenting force. Charizard swerved to escape the coming attack, the projectile passing harmlessly next to him, before retaliating with another bout of flame.

"Latios, dodge it with double team, and then dragon dance!" Tobias instructed. They needed to end this stalemate.

The eon dragon's eyes shone with power, blue aura outlining his iris. Figures rose around him, replicas of himself dancing and weaving between the columns of fire released by his foe. Tens of them danced around the fiery pokemon, flying in an intricate movement to confuse his enemy. Flamethrower upon flamethrower were let loose by Charizard, each hitting the mockery of his foe with a deadly precision, yet their number never dwindled. Each burned shadow merely replaced by another. Red aura enveloped Latios, raw power and energy coursing inside his very muscle, invigorating and intoxicating.

"Latios, dragon pulse, bombard him!"

Blue light lit the arena, crackling projectiles build up inside each of the eon's shadows' jaws.

"Charizard, tuck your wing and drop, use smokescreen while you're at it!"

Charizard followed his trainer's command in a second, folding his wing and dropping towards the ground in rapid movement, escaping the make shift half dome his foe had trapped him in. Thick black smoke come out from between his jaws as he fall, enveloping the place he was only mere moment before. Latios frantically angled himself towards the falling pokemon, following the trail left behind by the enshrouding smoke.

He released the dragon pulse, crackling ball of plasma sped towards the ground, filling the atmosphere with static energy. Loud explosion was heard, and he was thoroughly surprised as darkness enveloped him, encroaching his view in total darkness. His clones, being unable to redirect themselves, had collided their attack with each other's'. The dragon pulse bombardment met in the middle of the arena, colliding in a massive explosion, spreading the black smoke left behind by his foe to every corner of the arena.

The blue dragon sped forward, escaping the encroaching darkness in a second towards the light, only to hear his trainer's frantic command.

"Latios, dragon claws towards the sky!"

Not doubting his trainer, especially with how frantic his voice had sounded, he followed his trainer's command. His claw glowed with power, and without looking, he rolled his body around, claws swung towards the sky.

The orange draconian was there, maws opening in rage, eyes shining in determination. The dual typing pokemon plummeted towards his foe, his wings tucked to gain even more velocity, gravity pulling him even faster. His claws was enveloped in red aura, a telltale of his own dragon claw, ready to strike the eon dragon to submission, clashing powers against his foe.

"Dragon Claw into tail lash, bring him down!"

In a sudden move, Charizard spun in his flight just second before the two titans met, claws swinging meters before the two met and he used the momentum to brought his flaming tail down upon the eon pokemon. Latios' eyes widen, stopping for a split second but was too late to properly react upon Charizard's sudden attack. Another shockwave rang inside the area as the flaming tail hit Latios on his upper head, sending him towards the ground. A massive curtain of dust rose in the middle of the arena, followed by a thunderous sound, as the blue eon dragon body made contact with the floor in a split second.

"Fireblast! Don't let up!" Ash shouted to his fiery pokemon.

Massive conflagration of fire build up within the orang pokemon's jaw, intense heat waiting to be released dancing between his raging fangs. The air around him crackled, parted and singed by his unrelenting fire. He let it build up for a split second, before the raging fireball was blasted upon his downed foe, parting the air merely from its presence like a fiery deity coming down upon his adversary, ready to obliterate anything on its path.

"Latios, laster purge, hurry!" Tobias shouted in panic, eyes wide in fear upon the looming attack.

Pearlescent light coalescent among the dwindling dust, rainbow like orbs circling like orbit, congregating into the center. A light sphere of myriad colors, rippling with uncontained power, shone like a beacon among the layers of dust. With a flash the light sphere expanded, brilliant tower of million lights shot out towards the sky, parting the air like a thunder, scattering the dust into the very edges of the circular arena.

A massive explosion shook the very foundation of the stadium as the two force collided. Tremor of unimaginable magnitude rocked the earth, gale of wind whipped around to every corner of the stadium, air pushed out from the center by the rapidly expanding heat. Scream of fear and exhilaration filled the trembling atmosphere, hand whiten in clenched grip as the spectators held on into their seat like their very life depending on it.

The great lizard roared among the rapidly expanding air, struggling to keep hold on his position even as torrent of harsh wind whipped his bruised form. He grunted, eyes closed, trying his hardest to endure the pain straining his wings. The blue pokemon fare no better, the explosion had pushed him even further to the ground, cracking the arena beneath as his body was blasted by unimaginable force, robbing him of his consciousness for mere split second.

Ash gritted his teeth, one hand straining to keep his hat from flying off. He pushed his feet to the ground, trenching himself even against the onslaught. Wind pushed past him, his jacket flapped wildly even behind the protective psychic barrier. He looked at his pokemon, still struggling on his position as harsh wind buffeted him from every direction. A plan formed up in his mind, yet he hesitated, fearing the burden it would take on his pokemon. Charizard is nearing his end, but this might as well be the chance they needed to end this battle.

To finally win this competition.

To finally win against a legendary.

And he knew Charizard would scorned him should he let this chance pass.

It would be a dishonor.

"Charizard!" he called loudly, ignoring the whipping wind. The orange pokemon didn't give any indication, but he knew Charizard heard it nonetheless.

"Ride the wind! Solar Strike!"

Charizard's eyes snapped open, and with a great roar that was heard even among the roaring gale, he unfurled his great wings. Wind pushed against the extended appendage, forcing the great lizard to an even greater high. The orange pokemon embraced the wind, letting them move its huge body, riding on the ever pushing gale. He grunted, enduring the ever increasing pain on his wing. He closed his eyes, black threatening to completely cover his mind as he let his body to be pushed around. His jaws clenched tightly, fangs digging deeply into the flesh to numb the pain he felt and just enough to keep him awake.

A moment later he opened his eyes, feeling the wind no longer buffeting his body. He shook his head, clearing his vision from the muddiness that invaded his sight. He looked towards the arena, curtain of dust still shrouding the stone tiled field, hiding his foe from sight. His eyes narrowed, glinting with primal determination.

Flame engulfed his body, rising in heat even as air around him sizzled from the sheer intensity of the raging fire. Flare blitz, one of the most powerful technique a fire type could ever attain. His skin bristled, raw power coursing on his vein, fire lighting his every nerves, muscles bulging to its very limit. This would be his final attack, a technique he and his trainer had perfected only for this very moment.

A purple dome rose around him, enveloping the entirety of his body. Red and orange bleed into the purple, encroaching the color like an invasive aura. Giga impact, a technique he didn't learn naturally. It wasn't easy, he had spent countless times and effort to finally comprehend the necessary step, and it took him even longer to master it. Yet he was nothing but determined. His drive was nothing but abundant, his determination nothing but plenty. He strives on the challenges, on those deemed unlikely. He had trained hardly, pushing his body to the limit simply to master this.

And it had paid off.

Flame licked the surface of the dome, enveloping the circular wall with raging inferno. A sphere of pure fire, flame dancing on the very surface of the sphere. Heat unlike nothing ever been felt radiated from the body, felt even by the spectator hundreds of meters away from its position. The sphere grew by a seconds, the flame expanded, doubling its already massive size. In the middle of it stood the draconic pokemon himself, red aura coming out from every pores of his skin.

Prepare yourself.

And at the peak of power, like a raging sun, the sphere descended upon the land.

Latios.

And nothing will be left behind.

I have come.

With a thunderous sound, the sky parted. A raging ball of fire descend upon the land like a furious god. Clouds evaporated simply by standing on its vicinity, the heat of a million sun too much for them to stand against. Air expanded in rapid succession, inch by inch of the descent created a thunderous sonic boom as matters was pushed rapidly by the intense heat. The very air itself sizzled; every moisture within evaporated, leaving nothing but a dried up space.

Tobias paled upon seeing the looming attack. His eyes widen, disbelief written in his every feature. His pokemon's expression mirrored his trainer's, unable to comprehend the phenomena happening in front of him. The sheer power he could felt behind the attack was unbelievable, easily dwarfing even several legendaries he had met during their travel.

Tobias was the first to react, his experience as a trainer shook him out of his stupor. Within second he barked a command, realizing that it would simply be too late for them to escape the incoming attack.

"Latios, perfect defense, now!" Tobias barked, deciding to resort to defense.

Light shimmered around the eon pokemon. A double layer protection technique, protect and light screen rose up in challenge agains the incoming onslaught. Lines of light wake around him, constructing a pyramid like structure, translucent in color. Another layer rose, an invincible dome enveloped the legendaries, acting like a second line of defense. Tendrils of power danced between the two layers. Their energy merged, consolidating, creating a synergy between them; a perfect harmonious defense that reinforced each other.

This was his final defensive technique. A combination technique that some would think to be too advanced to be learnt. Combining the defenses for physical and special attack, a combination technique that protect the user from two fronts. It was a power hungry technique; it doesn't suit his style, he was a blitzkrieg pokemon. He strike his foe with speed that was too fast for his foe to follow, attack with power strong enough to force even a fully evolved pokemon to their knee in one strike. Defense was not his forte.

Yet he couldn't be happier now that his trainer had force him to master them.

The miniature sun descend into the arena, mere meters above the perfect shield Latios had erected. Ground sizzling beneath their feet, some melted into an unrecognizable sludge from the mere presence of the gigantic sphere.

And then it strike.

An explosion of cataclysmic proportion erupted when the two technique finally clashed. Light swallowed the arena, chasing away any shadows from every vicinity. Sound was nonexistence, air pushed around leaving a vacuum place on its wake for a moment. A thunderous sound, akin to weapon of mass destruction of ancient time, sounded mere split second later. Tremor of gigantic magnitude rocked the stadium; web of cracks spread from the middle of the arena, running to every direction in morbid speed. Gigantic curtain of dust rose from the point of impact, pushing outwards like a black gaseous tsunami, blotting the sun from ever reaching the surface.

Massive heatwave spread from the middle of the arena, wall of fire that threatened to swallow whole anyone standing on its path. The heatwave hit the invincible wall, pushed by the rapidly expanding air behind it. Purple hexagon flickered frantically on the outside of the arena, trying it best to contain the raging force from hitting the mass behind them. One by one the psychic pokemon falter from the sheer unimaginable force, their teeth gritting in burden, before finally succumbing to unconsciousness. Officials running around in panic, reaching inside their jacket for their spare pokemon. One by one red flashes come up around the invincible wall, tens in number, reinforcing and replacing their fallen compatriot.

Scream of fear filled out the stadium, palling in comparison to the rumbling sound of explosion. Piercing shriek replaced the joyous shout of the spectator, fear and anxiety replacing their used to be elated expression. Hand tighten in their seat, knuckle turning white with how hard they hold on for their life. Wind buffeted around them even under the protection of the invincible wall, howling maliciously, and they had to keep their head down else they would be blown away to kingdom come.

Ash's feet left the ground, his body hitting the ground by the whipping wind blowing into him. His body twirled around, before hitting the land, his chest flat on the ground. He closed his eyes, hand on his hat trying his best to keep it on his head.

The rumbling continued on seconds later, the rocking stopped first, followed later on by the ceasing sound. Ash pushed himself off the ground, his eyes finding purchases on the slowly diminishing cloud of dust. His breath caught up on his chest, fist clenching tightly as he strained his eyes, trying to discern the form of his fiery pokemon from behind the thick layer of dust.

And he wasn't disappointed.

A burst of flame shot out from behind the dust, expanding air pushing the diminishing curtain even more, scattering the black smoke to various direction. His eyes widen; the scene before him forever etched to his mind. Upturned stone and gravel, meter wide fissures ran around across the previously flat arena. Sections of the stone tiled field was pulverized, grounded into dust by the sheer force of the attack. Black sludge were scattered among the jagged pieces of rocks, melted by intense heat.

And in the middle of the arena, on top of meters wide crater, stood the draconic pokemon himself, breathing heavily, but very much conscious. Battered and bruised, but he was awake. Bleeding and injured, yet he wore them with a proud smile on his jaws, one foot on the downed form of his foe. Weary and exhausted beyond believe, yet the sheer determination that fueled his body was still brightly visible behind the two clear eyes, shining brightly like a sun.

And then the great dragon roared into the sky, proclaiming victory to the high heaven, basking in glory upon his downed foe.

And every mortal in vicinity shouted his names in reverence.

Charizard.

-Fin-


End file.
